Horsing Around On Iron Steeds

Three days of riding some of the most scenic and challenging roads in Southern Africa – and that’s just getting to the event. Cyril Klopper attended the GS Trophy National Qualifier and reports back.

- Cyril Klopper

Kadesbessies! It’s a surprisingly benign expletive that drops from my mouth as I wrestle my BMW R1200GS up and out of a mud puddle. Falling off your motorcycle when off-roading is all part of the game, but unfortunately I dropped my GS down on a sharp stone which poked a hole in the bike’s tappet cover.

I hurl the offending stone away in disgust and watch as a trail of engine oil follows me all the way to the safety of solid ground. It had all gone so well up to now. How on earth did I manage to mess this up?

As I remove my helmet, a rider splashes through the same mud. He makes it look so easy. Less than a minute later another rider arrives. He plonks down at exactly the same spot I did. Thank goodness for that. Misery loves company.

Six days earlier

My rocket-red GS was packed with camping gear, clothing and provisions. I restricted myself to the bare necessities, but the bike still looked overloaded. I glanced appreciatively at my Suzuki Jimny before mounting the GS and vowed never to complain about my diminutive 4x4’s limited cargo space again!

The plan was to ride from my house in Cape Town to Lady Grey on the first day, cross the border into Lesotho and spend a couple of days exploring the south before descending Sani Pass and riding up to Bergville in KwaZulu-Natal where the event was to be held.

The 1 000-odd kilometres to Lady Grey were uneventful. The only interesting thing to happen was my stay at an old inn where I was the only guest. The proprietor locked me in for the night, promising to let me out again in the morning. Let me tell you, it’s not at all amusing to hear skulking footsteps outside your door when you are supposed to be the only person in the building.